AFCI Breakers Tripping Intermittently
Hi Mike,
I have been a residential electrician for nearly 10 years. My question is about AFCI breakers. The company I work for wires an awful lot of new homes, additions, and remodels. It’s not a new problem but with new code requiring nearly every lighting circuit and a few power circuits now to have AFCI protection the problem occurs more often.
I currently have 2 customers that have AFCI breakers that trip intermittently. They both were insurance fire jobs and both houses were completely rewired (basically, new houses minus the shell of the home). So the owners have purchased all new lamps, light fixtures, sweepers, computers, appliances, etc.
- I leave the job and a week or so later I will get a call back and the owners will say that it trips at random. One says a couple of lights on the circuit are on, they are sitting reading the paper and all of a sudden it trips. They aren't turning anything on or plugging anything in at the time it trips.
- The other customer says he is on the computer that's plugged into a surge strip (new) maybe a light or two on and all of a sudden the computer shuts off because the breaker trips.
I have been to both jobs, replaced the breaker, opened every box and checked every connection, put all wires on the screws of the devices, and checked light fixture connections on the circuit. The entire time I have been on both jobs I was not able to get the AFCI to trip. No matter what light I had on, no matter what lamp or surge strip was plugged in, and I even have a 1500 watt load tester that I plugged into every outlet on the circuit and wasn't able to get it to trip.
Is there a device that I can put on the circuit that monitors what it going on and can give me some information in finding what the problem may be? Or do you have any suggestions on how to go about finding a problem that only occurs when I'm not there? There has to be an easier way.
The thing that scares me the most is the fact we are putting in 12+ arc faults into new homes and something as small as a connection in that light fixture or alarm clock or paddle fan all assembled in China could trip that AFCI intermittently and reek havoc on us electricians trying to troubleshoot the problem. I am using all Square D Homeline Products.
Thank you for any advice you can pass on.
J.
Mike’s Comment: If anyone has similar experience and can provide some answers, please post your comment.
